The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

Coming at you from the forests of Maine, Jonah kicks off the day’s ruminations with reflections on his father and his legacy, before turning to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the importance of rhetoric, Vice President J.D. Vance’s visit to Hungary, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s appeal to postliberals, groypers, victimhood culture, Iran, the ceasefire, Russia, antisemitic “realism,” and President Donald Trump’s rating as a war time leader.Plus, order Sarah Isgur’s book here.Show Notes:—Last weeks Ruminant—Last Friday’s G-File—Jonah’s underrated second book—Wednesday’s G-File—Jonah’s book: Liberal Fascism —John Patrick Diggins: Mussolini and Fascism: The View from America—Amity Shlaes: The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression—New Yorker: “How the Internet Fringe Infiltrated Republican Politics”—Rebeccah Heinrichs at National Review: “John Mearsheimer Has a Problem with Reality”—The Economist: “On the front lines, Russian soldiers pay officers to stay alive”—Thursday’s Commentary Podcast—Nick Catoggio in The Dispatch: “Schrödinger’s Ceasefire”—The Editor’s PodcastThe Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including access to all of Jonah’s G-File newsletters—⁠click here⁠. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠.
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In a blast from the past, Jonah sits down with his former job foreman and slumlord, Arthur Brooks, to discuss finding meaning in a complicated and empty world. Arthur and Jonah talk about the difficult conditions of modernity, phone discipline, living like your grandparents, identity portfolios, religion, love, friendship, starting The Dispatch, and Arthur's six steps for finding life's meaning.Show Notes:—Arthur Brooks: The Meaning of Your Life: Finding Purpose in an Age of Emptiness—Charles Murray: Taking Religion Seriously—Charles Murray on The Remnant—Malcolm Muggeridge: Something Beautiful for God: The Classic Work on a Skeptic's Conversion Through Mother Teresa's Exemplary Influence—Helen Andrews: “The Great Feminization”The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including access to all of Jonah’s G-File newsletters—⁠click here⁠. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠.
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When Theodore Roosevelt needed a work break, he invited champion martial artists to the White House to spar. When Jonah Goldberg gets tired of the grind, he calls up National Review movie critic Ross Douthat for some good ol’ fashioned intellectual judo. Jonah and Ross get stuck in on Iran, working through the political current state of play, the changing use of the term “regime,” the justifications for the war, and whether Trump betrayed MAGA. They conclude with a brief recap of their disagreement in writing over the future of conservatism.

Show Notes:—Ken Pollack Remnant—Mark Dubowitz on Ross’ little show, Interesting Times—Chris Caldwell in The Spectator: “The end of Trumpism”—Nick Catoggio in The Dispatch: “The Obvious Scapegoat”—Douthat in the NYT: “The Iran War Is Trump’s War”—Ross’ piece on the future of conservatism—Jonah’s response to Ross on the future of conservatism

The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including access to all of Jonah’s G-File newsletters—⁠click here⁠. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠.
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After a week of maniacally running The Dispatch in Steve’s absence—firing employees at will, publishing screeds against pickled herring, etc.—Jonah Goldberg takes up his usual post to ruminate about Pam Bondi, Trump’s speech on the Iran war, his old grievances on Cuba and the Times, the recent Meta case, receipts on John Rawls from last week’s Ruminant, Hannah Arendt on truth in politics, Plato and the divine, and the future of the podcast.

Plus, stick around for Jonah’s spicy take on birthright citizenship.

Show Notes:—“Trump Says ‘I Love’ People Who Are ‘Nice To Me’ – ‘Even if They’re Bad People’ ”—Fireside Chat with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche at CPAC 2026 - 03/26/26—Ross Douthat: “Trump's Second Term Has Ended the Conservative Era”—Jonah’s G-File response to Douthat’s article—Elliott Abrams in National Review: “The President’s Not-So-Reassuring Iran Address”— Robert Timberg: The Nightingale's Song—Tuesday’s Dispatch Podcast on Cuba—Friday’s Dispatch Podcast—Last week’s Ruminant on John Rawls—Hannah Arendt Remnant—Robby George Remnant—Harvey Mansfield Remnant—Advisory Opinions Pod: Birthright Citizenship Oral Arguments—Mediaite: “Hasan Piker Is the Left’s Candace Owens. The Press Treats Him Like a Rock Star”

The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including access to all of Jonah’s G-File newsletters—⁠click here⁠. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠.
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Who was Hannah Arendt? What did she believe about truth and politics? Was she wrong about the American Revolution? Today on The Remnant, Jonah Goldberg and Roger Berkowitz dive into these questions and more, discussing what intellectual category Arendt falls in, her understanding of truth, the question of human nature, Arendt’s relationship with Martin Heidegger, the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation, Adolf Eichmann, the meaning of the banality of evil, Arendt’s view of the American Revolution, and whether or not she was a small-“L” liberal.

Show Notes:—Berkowitz’s website—Arendt: The Origins of Totalitarianism—Arendt: Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil—Harvey Mansfield Remnant—Arendt: The Human Condition—Jonah’s book, Suicide of the West—Arendt: “The Crisis of Education”—Arendt: “On Revolution”—Berkowitz: “Was Arendt Wrong?”

The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including access to all of Jonah’s G-File newsletters—⁠click here⁠. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠.
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